Virginia blows out Texas on the road in the first statement win of the Odom era – The Cavalier Daily

Seeking revenge — or perhaps redemption — for the 2-14 beating the ACC suffered in last year’s ACC-SEC Challenge, Virginia travelled to the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, looking to prove that it, like its conference, is back at the forefront of college basketball.

The opponent, a long and athletic Texas squad, makes up for its middling shooting by ranking among the best in the country at getting downhill on offense and playing suffocating half-court defense. For a first true road experience, Coach Sean Miller’s team looked to be a real test.

Odom’s team passed the test with flying colors — putting on a show for a decisive 88-69 win over the Longhorns (6-3, 0-0 SEC), winning the two teams’ first ever matchup and earning the largest road win over an SEC opponent in Virginia history. The Cavaliers (7-1, 0-0 ACC) broke a stalemate just five minutes into the game, leading by double digits for the final half hour of play.

“We played our A-game today,” Odom said, “We had a really good effort all around, all the way from the preparation through the game. I thought our guys did a really nice job against a really good team of imposing their will and doing the best that they could on each possession.”

Virginia has scored more than 80 points in every game thus far, and is one of the best offensive teams in the country. Texas, in turn, has a strong defense that came into the game having held its past opponents to only 40 percent from the field on average. Offense got the better of today’s matchup, as the Cavaliers shot 54 percent from the field and 50 percent from three.

That scoring efficiency is what allowed Virginia to turn a narrow game through five minutes into a comfortable double digit lead at the 11 minute mark in the first half. Four straight threes from the Cavaliers — first from freshman guard Chance Mallory, then one from senior center Ugonna Onyenso followed by two from graduate guard Jacari White — turned an 8-9 deficit to a 20-9 lead.

“We want to try and get the best shot each time,” Odom said. “I thought our guys played a really balanced offensive game. We certainly want threes.”

That run was made possible by stellar defense on the other end — particularly in hindering the Longhorn’s top player. Junior wing Dailyn Swain, who followed Miller from Xavier, is one of the best slashers in the country, averaging over 16 points per game mostly near or at the rim. As the Cavaliers built up their lead in the first half, Swain was only able to muster four points, on an unimpressive 1-for-6 shooting.

Swain found his footing in the back half, but at that point the damage had been done. Through the first 20 minutes, Virginia held Texas to 11-30 shooting from the field, while outrebounding them 20-15.

Freshman forward Thijs De Ridder got to his usual spots, scoring eight of his eventual 15 in the first half. White’s two threes in that early run were supplemented by a highlight four-point play at around the two minute mark, bookended by two baskets from freshman center Johann Grünloh.

The Longhorns got moving a bit more in the second half. Swain came alive and the team got to its bread and butter — reaching the free throw line — with a bit more regularity. Every short Texas run was met with a Cavalier bucket, with Mallory slowing the game down by drawing fouls left and right, shooting nine free throws in the second half.

Imposing defense by Grünloh and Onyenso stifled sophomore center Matas Vokietaitis, holding the Lithuanian to his first single-digit scoring outing since February. Grünloh finished the game with 15 points, tied with De Ridder at one below Mallory’s game-leading 16, as well as five rebounds and a block. He found his success scoring quick dunks in space off of Texas lapses, as well as punishing slow close outs with two threes.

“We’re fortunate [to] have two seven-footers,” Odom said. “That play well off of one another and are physical as well. Tonight was a big test for them, and I thought they did a great job. They held their own, and we got some help to them.”

Leading for over 36 minutes of play, this win marks the biggest result of the Odom era so far. The Longhorns opened the season with a competitive loss to now-No. 4 Duke in which Texas led at half, and were coming off a narrow win over NC State heading into this game. Virginia matched up well against Miller’s side, providing a confident answer to the questions posed by Swain while dominating the interior, moving the ball and making threes on a high volume. 

Next, Virginia will join its football team in Charlotte Saturday, as the hardwood Cavaliers will face Dayton in a neutral site match at the Spectrum Center eight hours before the gridiron Cavaliers face Duke for the ACC Championship. 

The Flyers (7-2, 0-0 A-10) are a midmajor behemoth that hold wins this season over two Big East teams in Marquette and Georgetown, having lost to Cincinnati early in the season and, more recently, No. 9 Brigham Young by only four points. Led by a pair of guards in senior Javon Bennett and junior De’Shayne Montgomery, as well as sophomore forward Amaël L’Etang, Dayton forces on average over 17 turnovers per game and shoots over 57 percent on two-point attempts.